At long last the Union Government and the Governments of the States affected by Maoist violence have agreed upon a joint command and control structure for counter-insurgency operations involving the local police, Central paramilitary forces and intelligence agencies. This was needed for three reasons. First, although no State Government would admit it, there was a sort of turf war between the local police and the Central forces, often with disastrous consequences. There have been instances when the Central forces were found to have acted on their own without consulting the local police or, worse, disregarding their advice. On the other hand, there is a feeling among the Central forces that the local police see them as intruding on their turf and are reluctant to share information or provide logistical support. Bureaucratic hierarchy does not afflict babudom alone, it extends to the police too. Second, there has been virtually no coordination among State Governments as a result of which Maoists have easily slipped into a neighbouring State whenever they have faced the heat in a particular State. For instance, they have retreated into Odisha to escape security forces in Chhattisgarh; or they have slipped into West Bengal when chased by the police in Odisha; and, Jharkhand has been a refuge for Maoists fleeing West Bengal. Given this scenario, tactical coordination among four State Governments — those of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, West Bengal and Jharkhand — and sharing of realtime, actionable intelligence reports should go a long way in eliminating Red terror. It would have been better if Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Maharashtra had been a part of the new anti-Maoist strategy, not least because they are part of the Maoist-hit territory. To pretend otherwise would neither benefit the people of these States nor lessen the burden of their Governments to keep Maoists at bay. Third, apart from putting down the Maoist insurgency with the help of the police and Central forces, State Governments also need to launch a political counter-offensive that transcends partisan politics. Maoists can be neutralised with bullets, but Maoism as an ideology can be defeated only through a joint initiative by mainstream parties that believe in democracy and the ideals of our republic.
It is also welcome that both the Centre and the States have agreed to focus on development-related projects in Maoist-hit areas. The Union Government, to its credit, has offered to provide the funds to undertake these projects. It is now hoped that the State Governments will earnestly take up the work of building roads and constructing social development infrastructure like primary healthcare centres, schools and other facilities. There is, of course, the unstated problem of initiating development work in areas where the Maoists are in control: How do you build a road in Bastar without confronting Maoist opposition? It is here that the role of the civil administration will be crucial. Areas cleared of Maoists must be taken over by a determined civil administration committed to taking good governance to the masses. This would require the services of dedicated officers who are not obsessed with rank and privilege. Sadly, finding such officers would be a difficult task. Had it not been so, civil administration would have not yielded space to Maoists.
Major question is who is responsible for such delay? India has lost thousands of valuable lives for such delay and has paid heavy cost for such lethergy. India demands reply.....Is anyone shall coem forward to reply this question????????/
